Bride's Dress with 999 Pearls

Bride's dress with 999 pearls...

As befits Malaysia’s first, officially certified supermodel, Chia, 29, wore a simple yet striking gown at her wedding in Diwangkara Holiday Villa in Bali. Designed by leading couturier Keith Kee with exactly 999 pearls for luck, her gown was a labour of love that took two months and three days to complete.

A battalion of 18 toiled to hand-stitch the pearls supplied by Winnie Sin, owner of Rafflesia the Pearl Centre, onto the dress made of French silk chiffon and French silk satin.

“I was shocked and almost dropped my mobile phone when Amber rang and asked if I would create her wedding gown,” recalls Kee, who has known the supermodel for seven years.

“She could have chosen any designer, so it was a big honour for me. After she briefed me, I showed only two designs for Adrian and her to choose from — an open V-neck (which she picked) or a halter-neck. The pearls were concentrated on her shoulder straps and bodice, with a light sprinkling on her outer gown layer. The pearls were of different sizes and very difficult to arrange as I wanted to show their shiniest surfaces for maximum impact,” he adds.